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The personal information — including Social Security numbers — of more than 56,000 people was compromised in a hack of a health marketplace for D.C. lawmakers and residents. According to a report from New York Times, federal investigators informed congressional leadership on Friday that they had identified the personal information of members of the House, Senate, their families and staff on the dark web as a result of the breach.
The DC Health Link marketplace provides services to more than 100,000 individuals, including 11,000 members of Congress and Capitol Hill staffers. The breach, which included Social Security information, dates of birth, addresses and phone numbers of affected individuals, was initially discovered on Wednesday.
In a joint email sent Wednesday by House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, originally obtained by A politician, Chamber leadership stated that “This breach greatly increases the risk that members, staff and their families will face identity theft, financial crime and physical threats – which is already an ongoing problem.”
“Right now, our top priority is protecting the safety and security of everyone in the Capitol Hill community affected by the cyber hack,” McCarthy and Jeffries wrote.
The Health Benefit Exchange Authority indicated on Friday that it is working with both the Capitol Police and federal law enforcement agencies to track down the source of the hack. DC Health Link officials indicated that they have contacted the affected individuals with an offer of data protection services.
The House Administration Committee indicated Wednesday that it will launch an investigation into the data hack. The committee tweeted that “the chairman [Bryan] Steil is aware of the breach and is working with the CAO to ensure the vendor is taking the necessary steps to protect the PII of each affected member, staff and their families.